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D.A.R.Y.L.
D.A.R.Y.L.--a Data Analysing Robot Youth Lifeform--is a little robot boy who must escape government agents seeking to terminate him while discovering what it means to be human and the importance of love
- GenresScience Fiction
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
52 people want to read
About the author
N.H. Kleinbaum
21 books742 followersNancy Horowitz Kleinbaum is an American writer and journalist. She is the author of the novel Dead Poets Society, which is based on the movie of the same name
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
July 11, 2019
A kids book adapted from a movie, 34 year ago. Still. When does AI become human or at least meriting equal rights?
February 4, 2025
Quick review for a quick read. I'm walking back through my reviews for books read in 2024, and as part of a project where I read a book and watched the associating movie corresponding to it for my Booktube, I ended up making my first video in that project based on "D.A.R.Y.L." The acronym is "Data Analyzing Robot Youth Lifeform". One of my favorite movies as a kid. And I had read the book when I was younger, but it was only in 2024 that I was able to come back to it. And this is considered to be classic YA, so I was excited to jump back into this. (It's 157 pages, y'all. No one can tell me that you can't have a cohesive story with that page length. It's been done before, it can be done again. Cool? Cool.)
"D.A.R.Y.L." is about a boy who ends up escaping a facility with no memory of who he is to start. A ten-year old who is happened upon by an elderly couple. They take Daryl under their wing up until he's placed in a foster care facility until his "real" parents can be found. Joyce and Andy have always wanted another child of their own, so they sought adoption as an option. A connection allows them to take care of Daryl until his parents can be found. They're fascinated with Daryl as he grows accustomed to living with their family, between them, their daughter, and the frequent visits of the next door neighbor kid, Turtle.
Daryl adjust to life going to school, playing on the baseball team and navigating bullies - which make it clear to the family that Daryl is an extraordinary kid in more ways than one. But a couple claiming to be Daryl's parents are actually scientists working for the government and reveal that Daryl is actually a robot boy. The story marches on from there to reveal the things that Daryl can do, and the efforts he makes to try to survive the government trying to destroy him and return home to the family he's come to love.
This book is an almost direct novelization of the screenplay, with some more intense scenes and a few extra parts that weren't included in the movie. I really enjoyed what it offered and thought it made for an solid YA story. It read fairly quickly, and while there were a few tweaks that could have been made to deepen some of the development and plot holes, I though the execution of the overarching narrative was good. Glad to have the chance to revisit it. The book is unfortunately out of print, but the movie just got a Blu-Ray release in 2024, so feel free to check out the movie!
Overall score: 4/5 stars.
"D.A.R.Y.L." is about a boy who ends up escaping a facility with no memory of who he is to start. A ten-year old who is happened upon by an elderly couple. They take Daryl under their wing up until he's placed in a foster care facility until his "real" parents can be found. Joyce and Andy have always wanted another child of their own, so they sought adoption as an option. A connection allows them to take care of Daryl until his parents can be found. They're fascinated with Daryl as he grows accustomed to living with their family, between them, their daughter, and the frequent visits of the next door neighbor kid, Turtle.
Daryl adjust to life going to school, playing on the baseball team and navigating bullies - which make it clear to the family that Daryl is an extraordinary kid in more ways than one. But a couple claiming to be Daryl's parents are actually scientists working for the government and reveal that Daryl is actually a robot boy. The story marches on from there to reveal the things that Daryl can do, and the efforts he makes to try to survive the government trying to destroy him and return home to the family he's come to love.
This book is an almost direct novelization of the screenplay, with some more intense scenes and a few extra parts that weren't included in the movie. I really enjoyed what it offered and thought it made for an solid YA story. It read fairly quickly, and while there were a few tweaks that could have been made to deepen some of the development and plot holes, I though the execution of the overarching narrative was good. Glad to have the chance to revisit it. The book is unfortunately out of print, but the movie just got a Blu-Ray release in 2024, so feel free to check out the movie!
Overall score: 4/5 stars.
January 2, 2008
read 10.03.86
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews